The Heurassein Chief
by MsiaFanWriter
Summary: Estelle Heurassein, a character from Tales of Vesperia, finds herself in the so-called "dark days" of Prez Corp's global governance of Earth after the Jakob incident. She has lost much due to the Corp, and vows to reclaim what she can ... with a dark heart and mind. Can she be saved by her friends for her own sake before it is too late? [Estelle/OC] ONLY 5 CHAPTERS: COMPLETE.
1. Lady In Pink

**[AUTHOR'S NOTE]**

**This is a spinoff idea I had in mind that takes place before the start of The Centaur Women, even going on until way after The Centaur Women ends. It's a mix of kinda-what-if ideas I had in mind, merged with my An Axl Story Rewritten-The Centaur Women AU canon to the Original An Axl Story. Reading this story that focuses on a human living in this universe (kinda drawn directly from Tales of Vesperia) kind of needs AASR and TCW knowledge; it is appreciated if you read those fanfics, dear readers. Otherwise, just sit back and enjoy this random rambling of a crossover fanfic. (This story will be written to completion)**

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Chapter 1: Lady in Pink

A pink-haired teenage girl in blue pyjamas woke up. It was six am. She was in full cold sweat.

It was another night of worry and concern. Estelle Heurassein sat up, sighed and reached for the nearby glass of water on her table and drank a light sip.

"Think, brain, think. You can overcome this. Somehow. I will work it with the guys tonight … no need to worry." She uttered and wiped the sweat on her face away. "You can do this. Let it come."

She peeked through the curtains and looked upon the dark dawn of Brooklen City in America. She resided in a room part of an orphanage in a high residential building, looking down at a lot of people, vehicles and streets.

The year 2182, month of April. Reploids seem to rule the world for real now. Years ago, when it was declared that the Corp would decide global policy from then on, some were afraid, some weren't. In due time, those who weren't wished they really hadn't messed with the Reploids.

Estelle was 14 when she witnessed vagrants and unruly people taken in and executed in broad daylight. Bodies hauled up into trucks for incineration. Fear has remained ripe to this day.

Estelle also had the most unfortunate memory of seeing her entire family, save herself – descended from an unknown noble family from western Europe – slaughtered in cold blood one afternoon two years ago. She would later find out the reason why, and it smashed her opinions of her family dead and broken.

They were involved in generations of secret smuggling of goods; only recently quelled when the white Reploid ordered brutal merciless murder of all. She was raised to think she came from a noble creed; apparently not.

She was hauled off into brief police custody, given decent amounts of cash to live on her own in an orphanage after her entire Heurassein family's assets were confiscated, and … never elaborated upon.

"Sigh … soon … I will get over this malice, and get some kind of life back." She sulked to herself while in the shower, letting the warm water run down her head and hair for at least two minutes.

After cleaning herself, and dressing in a blouse, jeans and pink jacket, she picked up her bag with all her homework in, left the room, had it locked and made for the public transportation pods.

A high school building sat upon several layers of buildings looking over the ocean. That was Estelle's school. She got off the five-minute travelling pod and stood in front of its gates, waiting for her friends.

Just one more year plus of education, and then she'd have to move on with life on her own. No more Federation support, just harsh cold life. Life would be cruel to her, if not outright kill her soon.

Well, that wasn't how she saw it. She has been secretly raking in with the monies for the past six months, keeping them all in an auxillary account in a different bank than the one she currently uses. It was her safe stash, for the future. Good, right? Well, she'd be long gone if the authorities ever found out how she got them.

"I wish I was a princess in some fantasy land where magic runs freely and things, like blastia, controlled them and helped everyone lead a decent life. And there'd be mythical and mystical creatures abound …" Estelle sighed. "Not this … giant cruel machine … on Earth."

"Hello!" A bright-looking brunette in a dress and leather shoes came over to her. "Estelle! Ready for another round of intel update? I wonder what good news we will get from around the world now."

"Urgh." Estelle sulked. "Not so loud … besides, I think our luck might be running down. There are hints lately from the syndicate around the world that these vigilantes will really screw us over in the long run."

"Huh." The brunette tilted her head left. "Well … I'm sure you can figure out our plan and profits soon."

"Easier said than done, Evalyn." Estelle shrugged lightly. "I mean, I'm grateful for you helping me with homework, but exams are something I have to ace on my own so it matches up with the homework …"

"True … but no worries! Later in the noon, we can go back there and it's all bliss." Evalyn smiled.

"Hey guys." A black-haired, slightly taller, tough and strong-looking peer came over. "What are you doing here? It's almost time for the day school to start. Seven am to one pm of classes, remember?"

"Oh yeah, Mona." Estelle gasped a little. "Let's go to class … and then we get updates."

"Yay!" "Awesome!" Mona and Evalyn cheered. Nine months prior, they'd never thought they'd be part of an identity that presided over a large illegal syndicate that had them raking in monies they'd never imagine getting after a lifetime of work. Illegal for sure, but why stop there and instead bask in the billions?

Estelle, Evalyn and Mona rushed to school. Six hours of classes – more like every hour has fifty minutes of lessons, and ten minutes to rush from one classroom to another. The typical high school subjects.

One pm came. After the last class, the girls rushed from the common wings to a lesser wing which is rarely frequented – and had a secret pathway to their secret hideout. It was built by unknown persons, and no one used it, so it was made their special haunt.

A single ladder hidden between a fake wall which they knew how to access led very far down into the sewer network underneath the city. They climbed down carefully, rushed on the well-known route and approached a transformation chamber. It was time to be their identity of secret dark controlling.

"I'm gonna be quiet now. Lead us all well." Mona held Evalyn on herself. "Indeed, Estelle. Come what may, we can do it. We've invested in this too long to fail now." Evalyn held Estelle on herself.

"I hope so." Estelle became cold and stoic, and that was the girls' cue to be silent if not supportive. The machines prepared their get-up to assume a singular identity, and Iron Madame was formed.

Iron Madame walked in a long stiff robe of pink and many orange buttons, pink cape and hood. The chamber let her through, and she was in a chamber of many henchmen and henchwomen interacting via headphones and computers to associates around the world on the Righteous Strike syndicate's latest scoops if not failings.

"West Wing managed to transport the cannabis over from Outer Front south to Hilly Ranges! Expected raw shares of five hundred million zenny harvested! Good news from the Sandy Bars to the Upper North as well!"

"We lost contact with the Eastern Front! We've shut down the comms to avoid Federation cop and army tracking! We did lose billions on that front, but most of our allies have scattered and are going to Upper North to regroup clandestinely and relaunch Righteous Strike operations there!"

"We've got backup! The twenty billion zenny deal in the Green Parse and Lower Black went through and all the syndicates there have united with us! This really makes us now the dominant syndicate on the planet!"

The voices of henchmen and henchwomen shouted through the large chamber. Iron Madame walked up to her throne and sat, not paying attention to some henchmen trying to talk to her.

She gazed at the huge screen arching over the entire chamber and went through the visual cues and markers. At first, she was depressed with the low numbers, but upon drawing two and two with multiple checkpoints and gang hideouts here and there, she smiled to herself.

"Change the targets of Sector Gamma from north to southeast. Delay the deliveries in the Midwest. Rope in the northern supplies. Re-route all of them southwest and have the mainland fire up more scavenging."

The henchmen and women head the instructions and proceeded to work. Iron Madame rose from her throne and walked to the left; a path which led down other corridors and to her personal chamber.

"Not bad. I was wrong." Iron Madame surmised. "It looks as if it's an imminent multi-billion dollar loss, but … if we re-route strategies here and there, we can recoup the losses and earn even more. It just takes weeks. And then … we'd get another eight digit payoff in each of our secret accounts."

"T – that sounds great." Mona whispered inside the pink robe. "It's win-win again." Evalyn cheered lightly.

"Indeed. Alright, let's head back to our room and recline a little." Estelle whispered. The huge Iron Madame walked quickly on her pre-determined path. Other henchmen bowed before her and resumed their work.

How did Estelle and co come to manage this giant syndicate in the quiet, evading Federation cop and military fronts on various areas around the world? A lot of history built up to this, but let's just say that when the Prez Corp fully consolidated control over all the conglomerates it invested in over two years ago, many fled and hid underground, for a long while unsure of their next course of actions.

Estelle happened to chance on a rogue gang and minor syndicate. Having a desire to reclaim the equivalent of the Heurasseins' wealth taken away by the Corp (and in so doing, claiming a normal life back), she initially presented herself as an agent for a secret boss with huge ambitions, and one thing led to another.

The gradual pilfering of goods products and raw materials in very minor amounts led to increased illegal sales and profits. The many criminal groups heard of a secret alliance in America, wanting to pledge allegiance and direction to it for their own survival and wealth-seeking, leading Estelle to abandon her identity as an agent.

She managed to recruit Evalyn and Mona. Even though the two knew what Estelle was doing was wrong, she promised that they three will never be caught, showing that creepy white Reploid in Prez Corp a thing or two, and offered huge compensation for their services. They were to blend together as the Iron Madame.

And thus, Iron Madame became the public yet secret face for the global clandestine economy.

Iron Madame's room was large and spacious, walled in pink, and had a curious sliding window and balcony overlooking over an underground channel of sewage that poured to a bigger channel for treatment. Why Estelle wanted that balcony there, no one in the syndicate knew – except Evalyn, Mona and the intended guest.

"Ugh, I'm just so tired from today's class. Can we split up?" Mona sighed. "I need Evalyn to teach me stuff."

During Iron Madame's walking to her private chamber, a henchman and two henchwomen who were curiously of age with Estelle Evalyn and Mona checked out from their workplaces – it was the end of their shifts – and walked off to a quiet corner outside of this central nervous chamber.

"It's time again to do that, Carl?" A blonde of long-pointed hair asked. "Yes, Jennifer … it's time to go and see how Estelle is doing … just continue on as normal." The blonde dude sighed and started up a ladder.

"Man, you are seriously so lucky to have your fraternal twin sisters come with you to this hideous sack of a place, away from our night school, and work for that giant monster you call a girlfriend." The other short-haired blonde Emily followed behind. After she climbed, then only did Jennifer follow.

"She's … she's wounded inside, that's all. There's still good in her, and to perhaps abandon all this." Carl sighed, hastening his climb. "Again, I really thank you two, dear sisters, for following me in this charade …"

The three arrived on a secret path, covered with plastic to seal off the horrid sewage running far below them, and ran on that path. At the end, a large get-up was ready for them to quickly assume.

Carl remembered himself and his sisters being childhood friends with Estelle for ages. They played and mingled together, and even shared in Estelle's horrible memory of her family slaughtered in cold blood by the white Reploid's minions based on hard proof of goods smuggling.

Carl Emily and Jennifer were traumatized by the affair, but unlike Estelle, they escaped back to a normal life of a middle-class family, decent income, and did not suffer cruel ostracism from society. That was what led Estelle to invest into this massive criminal organization, to claim her wealth and somewhat-normal standing in life.

Carl never forgot seeing the dark eyes in Estelle's face, and vowed to do anything to claim her back. He made his sisters aware of the Iron Madame façade assumed by Estelle, and he had them assume something similar in order to raise familiar ground to try and talk some sense and help Estelle be back to normal.

"Ready." Jennifer held Emily on herself. "Make sure she feels comfortable, okay?" Emily held Carl on herself. "I know …" Carl assumed the get-up of a long red-buttoned robe, blue cape, and balaclava mask.

Count Cape walked on the pathway upwards, and happened upon the balcony of Iron Madame's private chamber. There, Mona asked for them to rest and recline, but Estelle saw Count Cape outside.

"Hush! Count Cape's here! Resume personas!" Estelle hissed. Iron Madame stood up and rushed towards the balcony to allow her guest in. Immediately, they embraced on another.

"My dear! You've come to visit me again! Quick, let's have another round of tender moment together!" Iron Madame squealed in some sort of formal language as she was being tightly hugged by Count Cape.

"Oh my dear." Count Cape felt his entire being cuddle against hers. "I just came to see how you are. Maybe linger, and then … I'd have to go back to my own place in society."

"No! Please! Stay with me!" Iron Madame held onto Count Cape even harder. "I … I need your presence to calm down so much … please … running this movement every day is driving me nuts. There's no moment of sanity left here … I can still shower you with all the money you want. Please, just don't leave."

Count Cape saw a glimmer of tears on the exposed parts of Iron Madame's face. They flowed onto her cheeks and down to her neck. He felt his and her beings wobble, inching to be even closer. He sighed.

"Alright … but it's not for the money. I just want you to be you." Count Cape said. "Just be the normal happy person I knew from our young childhood days, okay? And … maybe another time."

"Huh?" Iron Madame looked up to Count Cape's face. "What another time?" "No no, it's nothing." Count Cape instantly denied. "I meant, I was thinking of some other thing on my mind, that's for another time. Our tender moment, that's now. Not postponed." The two then gently broke off the embrace.

"Sweet." Iron Madame beamed with joy instantly. "Come on!" She ran over to the far corner of her chamber and sat on the large couch there. "Let's watch some movies! Any one you want for tonight only!"

"Aw come on. Can't it be that I choose the movies every time?" Count Cape sighed and walked slowly to her. "You always choose the not-so-nice movies, and I know ones that fit your tastes and mine perfectly!"

"No no, my darling." Iron Madame did a finger tut. "I insist, since you are the guest here and I am the mistress of this entire enterprise. Now, let us have our moments together before time cruelly sets us apart."

Both Carl and Estelle knew it was one another under their own hood and mask (it's just that their colleagues under them do not necessarily know who is the other). That is why Count Cape and Iron Madame have never addressed each other directly with their names, let alone the names of their secret get-up identities.

"Alright, alright." Count Cape shrugged. He sat down and inched as close to Iron Madame as possible.

The two identities watched an action-cum-romantic movie together. They enjoyed the romantic scenes of the couple loving each other, terribly separated apart before reuniting eventually, and the numerous action sequences in space. Her hand reached over to touch his hand, and his hand grabbed hers firmly and gently.

After the ninety-minute movie, they went over to her bed and lied down on it softly. No one spoke. He turned over to his right, and she to her left. The silent embrace began. Occasionally, she sobbed and sniffed, and he rubbed her back gently to soothe her. The bodies occasionally wobbled, but it didn't ruin the mood.

Sadly, they had to say goodbye hours later. Estelle just wished she could have everything in life, even her boyfriend by her. Alas, only the Righteous Strike was dominant, Count Cape was fleeting in presence.


	2. Routine Work

Chapter 2: Routine Work

Life as such continued this way for Estelle, Evalyn, Mona, Carl, Emily and Jennifer (of course, they've been at this kind of routine for at least two years or so). Estelle watched as the Righteous Strike syndicate continued to grow and form more underground alliances, raking in more profit than usual.

"I just updated my bank account pass." Evalyn said to Estelle and Mona one fine evening in the Brooklen City streets. "It's … phew, it's really a lot. You weren't kidding when you said you'd compensate us."

"Of course." Estelle smiled. "I believe your account should have eighty million zenny. Same can be said for Mona too." She glanced over to the tough-looking Mona. "Right?"

"Oh." Mona snapped out of her daydreaming. "I – I haven't checked yet. I'm sure it's fine. You did your part by sending the cash over, right? As long as it doesn't raise alarms, I'm cool with that."

"Guys. It'd be fine. Both of you are secure. Because I got you two into this, it's my job to make sure no harm befalls you. Just keep on believing in me, okay? I'm doing my utmost to keep it all okay." Estelle gestured.

"Okay." Mona shrugged and relented. "If you say so … see you tomorrow then?" Evalyn waved at her friends. Everyone waved back at one another, and parted ways.

Estelle held onto her bag tightly. "Alright, it's all at a good pace. By my calculations … I need to go another five more months to fully reclaim the Heurassein wealth. Just fifty percent more, and then perhaps I'm done with this. Grrh, if only that creepy white Reploid didn't do in my family … all this is so wrong …"

She went back to her room in the orphanage building. After locking the door, she tucked herself in bed, hoping to get a good nap for the time being. However, the memories came back.

"You're found guilty of having perpetuated a familial dynasty of illegal goods sales and smuggling! The evidence is hard against you! Accept your execution in good grace!" Mean-looking faceless Reploids yelled.

"No! NO!" Some adults in the Heurassein manor protested, but were gunned down instantly. A younger Estelle, Carl, Emily and Jennifer saw the blood-letting from the second floor. Estelle couldn't stop her eyes from widening and leaking tears. The trauma, also at that time, was too much to take in.

"Remember, sweetie. You're a Heurassein." A faceless mother figure patted a much younger Estelle on the head. "A Heurassein is proud of their tradition, longevity, noble actions and sheer perseverance. Even if trouble comes, we face them head on and make the most out of it. We don't give up. Promise me, you'd do that."

"I will, mummy!" The much younger Estelle beamed widely. Faces of kind and charitable Heurasseins abound in her head. And then the blood splattering and family liquidation began. The happiness on her face was replaced by sheer sorrow, and a metaphysical endless depth in her soul manifested.

"No … no … don't let it come … I – I'd do anything! Just let me out of this!" Estelle sobbed to herself, grabbing her blanket and stuffed pillow even tighter. "But … the family heritage … I have to claim it all …"

She sobbed for at least a few more hours, and then only did the peaceful sleep come to soothe her.

A new day came, and the Iron Madame façade was adopted (and eventually the Count Cape one too).

Iron Madame continued her own work after the three had their day school sessions over. More of the latest updates and trackings, more losses cut, more clandestine profits, more successful evasion of cops and soldiers.

She smiled inwardly. "Continue the progress. If necessary, scavenge all the recycling centers, pilfer more goods from all Corp-related conglomerates. If they want a fight, we fight back. For the syndicate's sake."

She felt her being wobble in nervousness. The henchmen and women proceeded to work out her orders to the global affiliates. Quick shouts in code relayed all the instructions. Iron Madame sat and watched on.

Throughout her entire career, Iron Madame had mostly been sitting on her throne, gave simple instructions to her henchmen to execute, and would move to her private chamber after a few minutes. Only when it was an emergency – it rarely happens – she would have sat on her throne and deliberate for more than 10 minutes.

When Iron Madame was not in this nervous chamber, she would retreat to her private chamber and often than not find her beloved Carl aka Count Cape standing outside the balcony window waiting for her. She let him in and would instantly be greeted with a deep hug and warmth.

"Oh dear darling … it's so good to have you here with me ~" Iron Madame groaned as her hands savoured every part of Count Cape that she was hugging and touching. "Please promise me you'd stay longer …"

Count Cape sighed. "Darling, you know it's hard for me to afford more hours than I can just to visit you … and … honestly, as your boyfriend, I worry that you'd end up in a much worse position than you are now …"

"I know where you're going with this, but no. I'm committed to this." Iron Madame squeezed Count Cape tighter. Their beings wobbled. "I'm going to claim back all my family's heritage no matter what."

"But … what if one day, the cops find you and arrest you? I don't want that to happen to you." He sighed.

"They'd never get me." Iron Madame beamed proudly and released him from her grip. "I've devised a million escape ways for all my minions and myself. We can evacuate to anywhere around Brooklen City or even four cities away, and safely resume operations. Things carry on like normal, everyone wins."

"But … all this you are doing is … wrong." Count Cape sulked. "Please, I'm begging you. Don't do this anymore. No more crime, no more revenge, just leave your past behind. We can live together anew."

"Grkh." Iron Madame clicked her tongue once. "Darling, you're not being realistic. Even if I go with you, it's a cruel world. Where can we be without money? Our survival is at stake. And even if I do go with you, you know I have millions as back-up for us to survive, start anew, and it couldn't be done without what I'm doing now."

"Ah … but …" Count Cape could only lightly protest. He knew the world's realities to not argue with her.

"Come on, dear. That's enough serious talk. For now, let us retreat back into our precious tender moments." She gently yanked him over to her bed, and they both retired to another round of close and warm embraces.

Their bodies played the part. Iron Madame hugged Count Cape to be so close and intimate to her, he couldn't even move. Count Cape would caress her hair, and they would kiss until she fell asleep and he parted from her.

This was Iron Madame's (and on his own part, Count Cape's) schedule all this while. Come in, sit, deliberate, observe, move out, enjoy private time with Count Cape, call it a day, and then repeat day after day.

Then, came middle of August. During a routine information check in the central nervous chamber, analysing losses and profits, a henchman came up to Iron Madame and begged her attention.

"Ma'am, you're aware of the numerous reports about our many smaller affiliates going missing, if not being arrested? There are rumours; perhaps they are the cause of these reports. Vigilantes." The henchman said.

Federation police and soldiers kept up their hot pursuit of anything illegal – by this point, meaning anything Righteous Strike-related. However, out of nowhere, a bizarre force of great figures came in droves, well-organized in their formation and fighting, stopping every human gang and thug at their feet.

This allowed the cops and soldiers to easily quell on any thug or hand they grabbed on. It was a minor issue back then when Iron Madame surfaced, but now it was starting to get out of hand. And now, Iron Madame had no choice but to face it, with a lick of spitefulness on her face. She clenched her fists.

"Hmph. Vigilantes?" She uttered. "Do we have visuals on any such people? Search and show me."

The henchman nodded and several others on the lower deck scrambled through their computers and data networks. A few minutes later, however, all they had was blur and grainy footage of many sites of interest.

The images, videos, the timeline of these reports and existing updates were all shown on the huge screen ahead of Iron Madame. She ran through the visuals, her brain cranking up all the numbers against her own predictions.

"W – what do we do, ma'am? They are on small scales, but persistent, and might end up jeopardizing all of us." The henchman reiterated. "I think we … I think we should stop all of these before they get to us –"

"This is irrelevant." Iron Madame answered. "As long as we keep the current course – avoiding the armed forces, avoiding internal strife, stop making noise – then we are safe. Stay the course. We should be fine."

"It's a high chance that our internal bickering and noisy performances exposed us. That's how these so-called vigilantes spotted up, surveyed us, mapped us and whatnot. Get everyone to stick to the plan!" Iron Madame reached out her right hand dramatically. The henchmen and women returned to their busy work.

She personally oversaw this for hours and hours, until the early evening. Once Iron Madame was satisfied, she got up to leave for her private chamber with no Count Cape. At the same time, other forces moved.

Velvet Maxine had been flying from building to building very quickly, a blur to all others. She looked down to the streets below, her Reploid eyes scanning the city for clues only known to her. Alas, it was a failure, and as the sun began to set in Brooklen City, she recognized it was time to go home.

"Alright, we're good today. Let's go back, Alia. We'd figure this mystery out later." Velvet Maxine sighed and then teleported of to a familiar retreat within the Prez Corp. Out of it came two exhausted Reploids.

"Seriously, don't have me jump so many times everywhere, even if the boots do all the work …" The blonde navigator Alia panted after they exited the retreat. "Suddenly twisting around isn't good, too."

"Sorry, I was trying to look for clues to sneaking into Righteous Strike's base. But … the energy readings make no sense. That's why I had you fly us around, to get rid of the fuzzy detections." Iris briefly bowed in apology.

"We should just take it to the others. They've been scouring Brooklen for far longer than us, since our turf is usually around Big City … next time, arrange a meeting with them, will ya?" Alia suggested.

"Huh, that's actually a great idea. I'd see what I can do. Will keep you posted soon!" Iris gently waved at her, and the two parted ways at their common rendezvous point. Iris made for the central manor.

It was easily 6 or 7 am in this part of the world. Everyone except the creepy white Reploid Lumine would still be asleep, or about to wake. She was lucky her working schedule was later today; she could rest for a tiny bit.

Iris went up the stairs leading to the central manor, only to find that almost everyone is up, in the dining room eating. Sue wasn't up yet, the rest were happily drinking and laughing at one another. She quietly made for an emergency ladder behind the manor, climbed up to her spare room entrance, unlocked it and entered.

"Phew … made it again. It'd be really embarrassing if Axl and the girls caught me …" Iris sighed.

"Hello?" A sudden loud bang on her door. It was Axl knocking. She almost jumped in fright, but had barely controlled herself to not do so. "Iris~ It's been 15 minutes I'm knocking on your door~"

Iris steadied herself, made sure to be normal – she was still sleepy – and answered the door. "Oh hey, Axl … I'm still kind of tired … but anyway, what's up?" She answered, gazing at Axl's human form.

"Come on, sis. Time for food. At least honour me by being at the table." Axl reached his hand forward. Iris had no choice but to oblige. She smiled; at least he likes me being around, she thought to herself.


	3. The Infiltration

Chapter 3: The Infiltration

Days later, on the flat top of a corporate center stood many great figures. Sure it was dark, but everyone saw one another clearly and knew who was who. They began their elaborations. They were planning something big.

"Alright, girls." Velvet Maxine clapped her hands first. "So far, the sabotage of multiple gang and their hideouts have been a huge success. If it weren't for your leaderships, all of us and our colleagues wouldn't have gotten this far. We are so close to smashing this giant coordinating ring and ridding all the Maverick humans."

The others clapped sombrely. It was good news, but the upcoming execution was not to be taken lightly.

"Alright, so based on the intel from numerous others, we've managed to chart every single Righteous Strike base around the world, every single path and personnel, except this one." Velvet Maxine activated a hologram and pointed at a cue that corresponded to Brooklen City. "This, I suspect, is the main center."

"Did we try to scout that area last time?" A figure in dark red groaned. "We found no clues."

"Yes, that's because we were looking for external visuals." A figure in black came forward. "However, I searched on the city's underground structures and its construction history. Thanks to that, we have found internal hints, and as such, we have found a way in. All we have to do now is group up and head there."

The group of figures oh-ed and ah-ed. Velvet Maxine led the discussion on coordinating teams to infiltrate the Righteous Strike syndicate headquarters. There were many outlets flowing to and from the place. They wanted to ensure everyone is well-positioned to begin their surveying and lock the place down properly.

The plan was set. Everyone agreed to head to Brooklen City two days from then to begin.

Their plan was to only survey Righteous Strike headquarters in the dark of Brooklen City. Many arrangements were made so that the vigilantes could balance their real work life with vigilante work, and they were given so much approval, surprisingly. Thus, many vigilantes did go about only in Brooklen's night.

The central nervous chamber and its periphery chambers and pathways were all made within an old portion of the city's sewer facility that the city council hasn't gotten yet to upgrade, hence Iron Madame's hold over the place. It was tough work initially for the vigilantes to scout every accessible path.

Several teams nearly got spotted by the henchmen, but had evaded in cover of darkness in opportune times. They scurried through the huge ventilation systems made through the place. Sometimes, a henchman or woman or two had to be knocked out with tranquilizers to secure their quiet progress on surveying.

Velvet Maxine worked with Austerino to survey a curious path from an unsuspecting high school at night. In fact, they found Iron Madame's secret access path, all the way to her private chamber, and its side chamber.

"Alpha Bold, do you copy?" Velvet Maxine spoke through her commlink. "Have you and the others secured any routes yet? Is it good?" At first, it was static, but the Alpha Bold team rep responded.

"We've gotten all the paths nailed. The twenty-one teams have already returned and delivered the surveying results. Our map of this entire place is complete. We even traced every personnel patterns."

"Awesome." Velvet Maxine. "We now fall back to headquarters, receive instructions and sort things out directly with this Iron Madame. Have to wait for the boss to relay the next course of action."

"Roger that." The rep replied and the communication ended. Velvet Maxine sighed.

"Turns out that Iron Madame … might actually be like us." She said to Austerino. "I mean, her entrance path here, details that match with her profile, and evidently the huge robe. This will be tough."

"Eh, that depends." Austerino replied. "The boss and other higher ups may decide to just do away with her, unless there's some kind of special case or reasoning. We need to fall back, just like you said."

The two vigilantes teleported back to their base that was the security company from this high school.

Then, mid-September came. After a long period of snuggling with Count Cape in her private chamber, Iron Madame let go of him to depart for whatever it is he usually does. Estelle wished to retreat to another chamber besides her resting place, for contemplation on the next series of moves for Righteous Strike.

"It's rare for you to want to use that place, Estelle … have things gotten bad?" Mona asked upward.

"I need a better place to think." Estelle answered. "Thinking inside that chamber with its iron walls has proven to be very effective for me. So …" Iron Madame transferred herself to said chamber with haste.

Indeed, it was a room entirely of metal walls. Huge and long, the opposite end leads out to the common pathways, with two pillars holding the ceiling beam there. A metal desk and chair was immediately in front of her. Iron Madame sat down, facing her own wall, and it seemed like only a minute has passed when …

"May we have a word?" Iron Madame was shocked by these alien words in this chamber. She stood up and turned around, and faced a great horde of vigilante figures, all colourful and masked and secretive.

"H – how did they barge in!? This place is meant to be more secret than secret!" Evalyn gasped. "Hush! Maintain your calm! We'll be fine! Just let Estelle do all the talking!" Mona held onto Evalyn even firmer.

"H – how did you enter this place? Every inch of this place makes it impossible for anyone not working here to enter." Iron Madame asked sternly. She used Evalyn's question but in her own Estelle-boss-like manner.

"Obviously not every inch. Otherwise we wouldn't be here." A huge figure in green criss-crossed bodysuit, headbowl and purple cape gestured. "Well, enough with the small talk. We have something serious to discuss."

"We have surveyed the entire area around this city. Every exit and entrance, we mapped all of them. In a few days, we will have all police and military forces swoop in here and around the world … and your syndicate is as good as dead. Your minions have broken numerous laws, too many of them punishable by death."

"Grkh!" Iron Madame clicked her tongue heavily. "That – that's not possible!"

"Au contraire." A huge masked figure in blue overalls and weird-looking boots voiced out. "Our numerous comrades around the world have been tracking the movements of every criminal group for years now, and all of them gave dead-on leads toward this nervous center you have here. You and this operation are finished."

"F … fine. I … I have been having doubts on my own operation as well. Numerous hands not following my leads properly, outright fights with you if not your friends, less profits than my estimation." Iron Madame said. "So … that's it? You're going to ring me in now?" She gestured seemingly given up.

"No." Velvet Maxine came out. "We came to inform you this … because someone up there wants you and your other friends out of this. We were briefed on your own background, and we too want you to be safe."

"Y – you read about my family?" Iron Madame didn't know how to respond initially. "Are you going to tell me that it's not my fault that my family is executed, and all that moral stuff about not claiming my family's original heritage? Are you going to tell me that my family in the past had it coming?"

"No." Velvet Maxine said, to Iron Madame's surprise. "No, even though all that you've said is correct. We've come to offer you and your friends a way out, to maintain whatever innocence you have left."

"Alright, Iris …" Austerino, the huge figure in pink and white overalls, thought to herself. "Do it."

Velvet Maxine said that the higher up in charge was prepared to overlook the crimes of the last member of the Heurassein family, as well as the involvement of her other five friends, if they were to run off, with whatever wealth they gathered, never to surface again, and start their lifes anew.

After all, though Iron Madame was head of the operations, her minions have committed crimes and misdeeds far worse than herself and were guiltier than herself. A sweeping military action would start in three days, and by then only is she and her friends spared death. If not, they can join the bloodbath of syndicate folk.

"This works for everyone. You get some semblance of life back with your friends, you get your safety, no red marks on your life record, we get to clear up the entire pilfering system you created but they executed." Velvet Maxine shrugged. "I suggest you take it, and make yourself and your friends disappear from here now."

"You have been warned. Again, there's no mercy three days from now if you show up around here." Austerino came forward, pointed at Iron Madame. "I think we are done here."

"Alright. Let's move out." Velvet Maxine nodded, and every figure around her too nodded. Iron Madame hasn't moved a bit – presumably she was stunned and trying to process everything she just heard.

Every tall figure turned around one by one and left the chamber through its proper entrance. No one was around when these figures left through the pre-scripted paths of escape. They were all jumping out and flying through the secret manhole at a tiny back alley into the skies. A figure from a nearby pillar snuck out.

Iron Madame could only sit back on her throne and contemplate the words that these figures gave to her, and also Evalyn and Mona. What else could she do? She felt her world rapidly unwinding.

Velvet Maxine and Austerino were the last vigilantes to leave the place. Velvet Maxine made sure that everyone else has gone first, then followed by herself and Austerino. The latter lightly tapped the former's shoulder.

"So … do you think this will work?" Austerino asked. "I believe so … after all, you managed to get her boyfriend and his friends to peek on our talk there, right?" Velvet Maxine answered. Austerino nodded.

Indeed, much earlier on, Austerino and other colleagues had rounded up Carl, Emily and Jennifer still in their Count Cape get-up and got them to stand as a witness to the vigilantes' talk with Iron Madame.

Count Cape walked in with the vigilantes, but hid behind a pillar to listen in. When the vigilantes left out of the chamber, Austerino had signalled Count Cape to leave with them and then part a different way that saw him end up at the balcony of Iron Madame's private chamber – the place where he always enters.

By this time, no vigilante remained in any of the grounds linking to this central nervous chamber, or the divisions within the central nervous chamber itself. Only these two tall personas were around.

"Oh man … this is bad, for Estelle." Count Cape moaned lightly. He leaned on the walls beside the balcony.

"So … what are we going to do? You heard them. This place is done for in three days." Emily whined. "Well, those people were clearly giving us the way out of this, so … bro, it's your call." Jennifer said.

"Yeah, I mean, whoever these people's boss is, that person must've been really lenient on us. If what those vigilantes said is true, then their boss must've known about us, our histories, even Estelle and Evalyn and Mona's histories. By all accounts, the Federation would normally never let us off unless we are dead!" Carl said.

Silence permeated Count Cape. "I need to process this first. Let's go back home first." Count Cape said.

The following day, Estelle was silent. She got up from her bed, cleaned herself and proceeded to go about high school with Evalyn and Mona in regular fashion. The same could be said for Carl, Emily and Jennifer – for their own night school, that is. No one dared bring this issue up, especially during school.

The bell rang. Supposedly, it was time for them to become Iron Madame, but Estelle faltered. "Guys, I'm really sorry for what I've done. All this while when you're my accomplices." She spoke, outside of school.

"No no. It's fine." Evalyn shook her head. "You did what you think was right, based on your own family history. But, having said that … what those vigilantes said that day, it's a golden opportunity to get out of this fine and alive. Shouldn't your answer be this easy though?"

"I … I personally have no need for the huge millions you gave us." Mona sighed. "But, if you ever need help, you can come to us. Right, Evalyn?" "Yes, that's true! Aren't we your closest friends since elementary?" Evalyn pumped a fist as a show of determination. "Let's move on together!"

Estelle's eyes looked all over the place. She had only managed to claim back seventy-five percent of her estimation of the Heurassein heritage thanks to Righteous Strike, but … her heart was torn.

"I'll let you guys know my decision later. My brain needs more time to filter this out." Estelle moaned.

* * *

**[AUTHOR'S NOTE]**

**If this story is being paced very fast, I'm sorry. I mostly had the key points written down, but I couldn't find any room for emotional expansion or development. Especially for this chapter, and the way it has to set out.**

**In case you're wondering, Estelle Heurassein here is very AU, totally different in character from the original Tales of Vesperia. Given what happened in AASR, and partially in The Centaur Women, plus her original nobility background, I'd say that this was the best way to write her as part of the Corp dominated world.**

**This story shall end soon. I'm doing and have done all I can for this character in this MMX-based AU world. I personally like how this Estelle turned out; she's more likable to me than how she was in the original game (which is already so adorable, don't get me wrong).**


	4. The Strikes

Chapter 4: The Strikes

The three days deadline was up. In the Righteous Strike syndicate headquarters and affiliates, everything was running according to pre-determined plans. However, some nervous voices emerged.

Things seemed to be running fine, sure, but one couldn't help feel that without their leader's constant bellowing of instructions, something seemed amiss. An air of confusion and disarray took form and shape.

"Where is ma'am? It's been a few days since she's come …" "Something's not right …" "Should we get her?" "No! Let's stay the course! It's just two days! We have so much plans made ahead of time!"

It was early afternoon, so in theory nothing much else should've happened other than Iron Madame coming in.

BOOM. BOOM. BOOOOOM. A series of rigged explosions stirred the entire headquarters. The henchmen and women were unnerved. First came the shouts, and then came the rumbling noise of walking metal.

"We're under attack!" A henchman shouted. "Multiple intrusions at sectors B, G, Z, YA! Mobilizing defence troops! Wait!" A henchwoman shouted. "We're getting the same readings and messages from other branches around the world! This is! It's a blitzkrieg! We're going down –!" Another henchmen shouted.

BOOOM. A huge explosion in this central nervous chamber. Guns fired and blood splattered on the walls. An army of merciless newer gen Guardroids and soldiers poured into the scene. Many henchmen fell below.

"For the sake of this world, take them all in!" A chief lieutenant barged into the scene and the Guardroids had either arrested many syndicate henchmen, or outright killed them when the struggled turned violent.

A squad of computer hackers raced over to the main computer databases in the central nervous chamber. They hurriedly plugged in their wires and began downloading data, and quickly analyzed as much as possible.

"Conclusive evidence on a global scale! No space settlement details at all! This is a boon!" The newer gen Reploids exclaimed after analysing all the leftover data. Another rumble from an explosion elsewhere.

"Ma'am, where are you!?" A henchman cried out amid a fight in the lower resting chambers. The syndicate's men and women fought back against the soldiers, but live bullets continued flying and many were splayed.

"Ah! Ma'am …" The same henchman was shot in the back of his head. The cold newer gen Reploid grabbed the dead body and dragged it out, alongside the many others purging this mess.

"It's a pity, don't you think?" A newer gen Guardroid said to his superior. "All these humans …"

"It's their own fault they chose to be like this. Many have surrendered, and that's for their own good. But, if by chance someone escapes and never repeats this whole scandal, then may some higher power be merciful on them and forgive them." The lieutenant answered. "Not the Federation, not the Corp, that's for sure."

It was a huge mess in this sewer underground network. Numerous paths blocked out, many people trapped and murdered on the spot. The same could be said for the various syndicate bases around the world. The clampdown began all over simultaneously. It was both noisy and quiet at the same time.

The turmoil lasted for a few hours. Many other peripheral measures were executed at the same time.

"It's even more so a pity, considering the police and army have been erasing memories of the humans of their loved ones being gunned down … they don't even know now they once had children, brothers or sisters who were working for the Righteous Strike, thanks to Corp tech. It's a messy ethical affair." The Guardroid said.

"Yes, a pity." The lieutenant answered. "But, if only the humans who made us weren't so gullible to the dark twisting of logic and emotion in their minds and hearts, all these wouldn't have happened … their fault."

The lieutenant and the Guardroid left the scene while the soldiers and relevant personnel continued their blasting and utter confiscation of every material pilfered from the people and the Corp's own conglomerates.

Where were Iron Madame and Count Cape at this moment? Gone, likely. For it was only yesterday that the two personas met, after Estelle called Carl via cell phone, under cover of the dark.

Evalyn and Mona had waited at the side of the school front gate, and they watched Estelle slip to a corner to speak on her cell phone. They didn't know what that was about, but they didn't want to rush her.

"Hello? Carl?" Estelle began, when the call went through. "Oh hey, Estelle, fancy hearing from you. What's up?" On the other side, Emily and Jennifer perked their heads up to look at him.

"I … I need you to meet me in the evening by the water tower. You know, when you climb up the ladderfrom the balcony and you can see a water tower in the distant? There. Meet me as Count Cape." She said.

"W – what's up? And I guess you'd be in your Iron Madame form too?" Carl stammered.

"Yes. I need to talk to you about something urgent. And it may also involve more people than we think. See you at six. Don't be late. Make sure no one's around." Estelle said and hurriedly hung up.

"Whoa." Carl put his cell phone away. "It was Estelle. Looks like she may want to talk to us about the whole vigilante bust-in thing we saw that day." He glanced at his sisters.

"Alright, then let's do it!" Emily pumped her fist. "Careful now, bro. Our lifes and futures are at stake." Jennifer almost wagged a finger at him. "No worries, I know what to do." Carl affirmed to them.

"I managed to arrange for us to meet Count Cape." Estelle said after returning to Evalyn and Mona. "We … we're going to talk things out, and I will reach a decision. I still will keep us, you two in particular, safe."

"Friend …you need to move on. And of course, we're in this together." Evalyn sighed. "I – I know … I know …" Estelle couldn't help but feel like retreating into her shell inside her mind.

Unknown to either side, each group of three had gone into the syndicate headquarters to collect their get-ups. They also collected as much of their personal belongings as possible. The place was doomed; might as well make it out safe and with the most of it.

Time soon passed. Evening came to the rooftop floor where a water tower stood.

Unknown to each of them (again), they were occupying quiet and dark spaces of opposite walls on this brick hut-like structure on the rooftop. They were quite close, yet unaware of the other.

"I'm ready." Count Cape uttered. He glanced at his watch under his left glove. "Five minutes to go …"

"I hope you're ready, Estelle. Do the right thing!" Evalyn urged before she became silent. "I know …" Estelle sighed, as she made sure her Iron Madame form was steady. She covered her head with her deep hood.

They each paced out past the furthest reach of the wall, and they spotted one another by the water tower.

"Whoa! You're here!" Count Cape exclaimed first. "Eep! Y – you're here, darling!" Iron Madame gasped. The two stood in front of one another, no one moved. Each waited for the other to speak first.

"So … it's about … Righteous Strike, and …" Iron Madame started easily. "Well … you know, I started this entire thing to reclaim all my lost family wealth, by any means necessary, but …"

"You've always felt so conflicted. Conflicted that when you were young, you were taught that your family is nothing but a noble creed, yet when your family was slaughtered, you were shown how the exact opposite you were." Count Cape finished for her. "And that drive to get what you feel is your family's back."

"Y – yes …" Iron Madame fidgeted. "And … recently … some vigilantes came to face me …"

"First." Count Cape interrupted her. "I have a confession to make. Well, some. Let me start one at a time. Dear, me and my sisters … we've always been worried about you. They're worried you've not talked with them all these years since you lost your family. So … that's how we joined Righteous Strike as analysts."

"You didn't!" Iron Madame gasped. "How did I miss all three of you!? I approve every step of the way!"

"Second … my sisters are here." Count Cape pointed downward to his body. "How else can I be Count Cape to cuddle with you? We just don't know who your … friends inside you are."

"No!" She gasped and blushed heavily. Their beings wobbled, their legs fidgeting in uncertainty and with shy.

"And … if you're going to talk about the vigilantes meeting you offering you a way out, we as Count Cape were pulled in by them the same day they talked to you. Two days ago? That one. We heard everything. Those people mentioned six of us. Obviously, it's me …" Count Cape continued and gestured to him. "… and all of you."

"That explains the six …" Iron Madame gasped again. "They're offering all of us a way out?"

"Yeah, mostly because of your background, Estelle." Count Cape said. "So … you said you've having doubts about running the entire operation since many lower-downs don't listen to you. Just jump ship. You heard them, they said there are people under you who deserve the death penalty more than you do."

Count Cape's legs kicked on the ground. "Man, what kind of world is this? A sci-fi story come true? Where robots take over the world and are managing us humans …" He briefly murmured.

"But … I haven't claimed back as much of my family heritage as I want!" Iron Madame squealed. "And …"

"Estelle." Count Cape stopped her. "I'm sure your friends may have told you this, and me and my sisters will tell you the same thing now. Let. It. Go. You are not the rest of your family. They say they're clean, but they were killed based on overwhelming evidence of criminal guilt. You don't have to be like them."

"So … we can just run away from all this? Together? Really?" Iron Madame asked uncertainly.

"Yes. So … come." Count Cape reached out his hand. "If you take my hand, we leave your old world behind. We all can help build you a brand new world. With all the pay you've given us, plus a lot for yourself I'm sure – since they've let you go scot-free, you use that to build your own future. Your own Heurassein line."

"I … I …" Iron Madame suddenly felt calm and cool on the inside.

A lot of conflict and doubt warped from a huge domineering cloud into sheer nothingness in her mind. She suddenly felt a huge amount of future security, and she was calm and relaxed.

"Yes … you are right. I am my own Heurassein. I can build my own future!" She proclaimed and grabbed Count Cape's hand. Count Cape pulled her to himself and they were in another embrace.

"Yay!" "Congrats! I'm happy for you!" "Good job, bro!" "Yaay!" The other girls inside their forms uttered, breaking the silence. Carl opened Estelle's hood and kissed her on the lips for a while, then broke it off.

"Welcome home." Carl said. "Hehe … thank you." Estelle snuggled closely to him.

Afterwards, they all ran from the spot. Seems like the old troubles and worries were gone.

One day after the Righteous Strike raids, at the Prez Corp manor. It was a fresh morning there (and therefore evening in Brooklen City). Axl got the paper from a manservant. He glanced on the front page in the living room with everyone. The centaurs were talking amongst themselves. Iris was holding a book of literature.

"Hey, bro look." Axl waved the day's paper at Lumine. "The news said something about cops and soldiers all over the world, the Federation, raided a major criminal syndicate. Everything's gone now."

"Ah. That's good to hear." Lumine replied. "Solves some very minor problems I've been hearing for a while."

Iris watched as Lumine continued: "Many of the Corp's conglomerates have reported scalping of materials and goods in very tiny amounts. If some crime lord was oh say gathering them up to gradually build up some kind of criminal network, multiply that with the number of hands involved, there's a lot of illegal profit there."

"So … you're still going to deal with these humans the same old fashioned way again?" Axl asked.

"Why not? It's against the law, it's disrespect to the human perpetrator and other humans. Don't worry about that, I've dealt with this. In the coming days, it will all manifest." Lumine stretched his hands. "This time, we'd have a total human encirclement and quelling, and hopefully any humans who survive can start anew."

Axl grumbled and glared at his younger brother in a grouchy manner. His centaur partners looked on worriedly. Iris continued reading her book, though she couldn't help but feel that Lumine was looking at her, satisfied.

"Well, let's just hope that the cops and soldiers are doing their best. Plus, the complement system too. But that's what I hear anyway." Lumine smiled at Axl. Iris still felt as if Lumine was talking to her.

"Uh, boss, isn't it time for us to go to work?" Centauria poked on Axl's shoulder. "Yeah, or the others like us will complain that their boss is absent. We can't have that." Cheironia chided him as well. Axl sighed lightly.

"Alright, let's move out. And bro." Axl quickly turned to Lumine. "You can stop giving me more Centaurias and Cheironias. Coming up with everyone's joint names is already tiring for me, now you have like six more resting pods in my room!? I don't even know where these ladies come from …"

"Oh, it's the usual. Some old Reploids who want to be reassigned just simply can't fit any new job categories. So it's better to let them be with you, eat and sleep, have fun with you and us and Sue as well." Lumine chuckled. "But, yes, there are no more for you. The rest have been successfully reassigned."

Iris gave a blank and silent stare at Lumine after seeing Axl and his underlings teleport off. "Don't make Axl mad anymore, please. We both know his anger can determine how well this family goes on."

"Of course. No worries." Lumine smiled. "I'm just glad that so many things are going according to plan. That's why I can afford to even be around to tease him. I'm controlling myself so I don't savour too much."

"You are so weird … the weirdest of dad's creations." Iris murmured, to which he simply laughed aloud.

* * *

**[AUTHOR'S NOTE]**

**And so ends Estelle's sad little story, parallel alongside the Reploids from my AASR AU of AAS.**

**In case anyone is curious, at the end of this chapter, it takes place a month or so after the conclusion of The Centaur Women. Yes, I wrote this story to deliberately parallel with that AASR sequel. If you connect the dots, you may have seen some spoilers or two about that fanfic, which as of end June 2019, I have not yet finished writing. **

**Or you can treat it as an independent story from The Centaur Women. I don't mind.**

**Final chapter comes up soon!**


	5. Estelle Anew

Chapter 5: Estelle Anew

April 2184 AD. Many, many months after the quelling of Righteous Strike and all its smaller hands. The cruel way the Federation handled that affair and the utter memory wipe done on its people went unnoticed save to the elite running the Federation. Everything has reverted back to the way it was originally run.

No more minor pilfering, or scavaging of dumpster sites, no more illegal manufacturing and sales of goods. Life under the creepy white Reploid and his silent bureaucracies continued on for humans and Reploids.

Estelle settled in her office nicely, going through the latest numbers on her computer concerning purchases and sales of agricultural products through her sales and distributions company.

On the desk in front of her own was a series of framed photographs. Photographs of graduation from high school with Evalyn Mona Carl Emily and Jennifer last year, the six having fun in general, the teasing of an occasional Reploid, seeing Mona of to an overseas sports competition, and her marriage with Carl.

"Those days are behind me …" She muttered when her calculation work was done. "No more wearing those huge get-ups. Just moving forward … and I'm glad I'm building my own future."

A series of knocks on her door. "Come on." She said loudly. In came Carl, holding pamphlets about the latest machineries. "They've come again. And I had to spend hours to endure all their tech talk …" He said.

"That'd be great for our farmers! You're helping them improve their work and performance even more! You have to go through all of them with me!" Estelle stared at his face expectantly.

"Alright, dear … fine …" Carl sighed as he gathered all the pamphlets and rearranged them on her desk.

Estelle recalls her friends all agreeing to stay with her after graduation. Evalyn and Mona even surrendered their eight-digit monies, even though Estelle herself has eleven-digit monies in her records.

Carl Emily and Jennifer offered to work for Estelle as well. Capitalizing with the turbulent food supply market a few months ago, Estelle decided to use a tiny portion of her cash to found a company intended to help solve food supply and demand issues. Emily and Jennifer are currently part of her human resources management.

Evalyn deeply apologized for not being with Estelle all the time, but Estelle didn't mind sponsoring the former's higher education studies in the European continent. Mona stays with them around as a friend, but she too soon left for an athletic scholarship south of Brooklen City. She'd come back on and off.

There was much work to do. Estelle dived in deep to rouse out her sense of purpose in her new life. It's still a small company, but gradually she would build it up and help everyone.

"Ow." She murmured while Carl squirmed in thought. She had her left hand reach down and rub her stomach. She looked up to Carl and back to her stomach. "Not just yet … let's make it a surprise." She uttered.

In her office in her giant automated warehouse, she listened to Carl repeat all the information on the latest tech to spur plant growth and faster delivery services. Both of them were unaware they were being spied on.

"There we go. They've gotten a good life, Alia. Let's go back and report to headquarters." Velvet Maxine peeked from a quiet unnoticeable corner, and darted off into the sky – in broad daylight. Well, she is a blur of motion now, so it doesn't matter. She also continued talking to herself.

"Yes, yes, we still continue patrolling the world, ever watching over the humans to see if they will ever go Maverick. Our task never ends. You'd never know if the next generation of humans go far more Maverick than today … urgh. Well, the pay is always good, plus we're balancing this with real life."

"N – no, you convinced me long ago. We are not sneaking around the security company the way she snuck around Righteous Strike's numerous underground pathways just to find out if the Corp funds us. Everything seems to be kept secret, so … I believe we are always clear. Let's always keep it quiet."

Iris recalled Axl now struggling to balance his interaction with twelve Centauria/Cheironias. And Sue, the human love of his life now who has graduated from college by now and is working for him.

At least things aren't dull or boring. They certainly are exciting in the Prez Corp extended family.

Estelle slowly tapped her finger on the desk, while listening to Carl. "I'll make everyone around me happy … and it is my own life after all."

She smiled to herself.

* * *

**[AUTHOR'S NOTE]**

**Welp, aside the possible spoilers to Axl in his Reploid family and others way past the timeline in The Centaur Women, that's it. Estelle's story is done. **

**I hope everyone who's come by here enjoyed yourself in one way or another. And that is all. (Going back to finishing The Centaur Women, as of end June 2019, by the way)**

**See you around!**


End file.
